Charles Gildon
Charles Gildon (1665 - 12 January 1724) was an English poet and miscellaneous writer. Life Overview Gilden belonged to a Roman Catholic family, and was an unsuccessful playwright, a literary hack, and a critic of little acumen or discrimination. He attacked Pope as "Sawny Dapper," and was in return embalmed in The Dunciad. He also wrote a Life of Defoe.John William Cousin, "Gildon, Charles," A Short Biographical Dictionary of English Literature, 1910, 157. Web, Jan. 17, 2018. Youth Gildon was born in 1665 at Gillingham, near Shaftesbury in Dorsetshire. His father was a member of Gray's Inn, and had suffered on the royalist side in the civil war. The family was Roman catholic.Stephen, 347. Gildon was sent to Douay when 12 years old, to be educated for the priesthood. He returned when about the age of 19, and on coming of age inherited his father's property. He ran through it in a short time, and increased his difficulties by marrying at the age of 23. Career He afterwards led the life of a hack-author. 7 years' close application to study led him to abandon catholicism for deism. In 1695 he published the Miscellaneous Works of the Deist, Charles Blount (1654–1693), and in a preface signed "Lindamour" defended the practice of suicide. Gildon afterwards announced his conversion from deism by Charles Leslie's Short and Easy Method, 1697. In 1705 he published the Deist's Manual, defending the orthodox creed, with a letter from Leslie appended. Conflict with Pope He afterwards came into conflict with Pope. The 1st offence seems to have been given by Gildon's New Rehearsal; or, Bays the younger: Containing an examen of Mr. Rowe's plays, and a word or two on Mr. Pope's 'Rape of the Lock,' 1714. He there attacks Pope as "Sawney Dapper," and accuses him of having himself written the panegyric prefixed to his Pastorals in the name of Wycherley. Pope afterwards asserted that Gildon had abused him in a life of Wycherley, and had been rewarded by a present of 10l. 10s. from Addison. No such life of Wycherley is forthcoming; the story is in several ways inconsistent, and is part of Pope's elaborate concoction of falsehoods against Addison (Elwin, Pope, iii. 234, 537; Carruthers, Life of Pope, 1857, 130, 236). In the Epistle to Arbuthnot (1735) Pope speaks of Gildon's "venal quill," words substituted for the "meaner quill" of an earlier version (1724), to countenance this accusation. Pope also attacked Gildon (1728) in the Dunciad (bk. iii. 1. 173). The story about Addison is worthless; but Gildon was one of the unfortunate scribblers of the time, and appears from Dunton's account to have been a dependent of the whigs. He died 12 January 1723-4. Writing Gildon was described by Boyer (Political State of Great Britain, xxvii. 182) as a person of ‘great literature but mean genius." The last epithet is sufficiently justified by his works. Besides those above mentioned, the following are attributed to him: 1. ‘History of the Athenian Society,’ 1691 Dunton, John, for this society. 2. ‘Postboy robbed of his Mail … containing some 500 letters to several persons of quality.’ 3. ‘Miscellany Poems upon various occasions,’ 1692. 4. ‘Examen Miscellaneum,’ 1701. 5. ‘A Comparison of the two Stages,’ 1702. 6. ‘Life and Adventures of Defoe.’ 7. ‘Canons, or the Vision, addressed to James, Earl of Carnarvon’ (afterwards Duke of Chandos) Brydges, James, 1717. 8. ‘The Laws of Poetry laid down by … Buckingham … Roscommon, and … Lansdown, illustrated and explained,’ 1721. He was author of the following plays: 1. ‘The Roman Bride's Revenge,’ 1697. 2. ‘Phaethon, or the Fatal Divorce,’ 1698 (plot from the ‘Medea’ of Euripides). 3.‘Measure for Measure’ (adapted from Shakespeare), 1700. 4. ‘Love's Victim,’ 1701. 5. ‘The Patriot, or the Italian Conspiracy,’ 1703 (from Lee's ‘L. J. Brutus’). In 1699 he edited Langbaine's ‘Dramatic Poets,’ with a continuation. He also wrote an essay prefixed to a volume published by Curll, and intended to pass as a seventh volume to Rowe's ‘Shakespeare’ (6 vols., 1710) (Notes and Queries, 2nd ser. xii. 349). Publications Poetry *''Threnodia Virginea; or, The apotheosis: A poem''. London: H. Hills, or John Lawrence, 1708. *''Libertas Triumphans: A poem''. London: Tho. Bullock, 1708. *''A New Rehearsal; or, Bays the younger''. London: J. Roberts, 1714. *''Canons; or, The vision: A poem''. London: J. Roberts, 1717. Plays *''The Younger Brother; or, The amorous jilt: A comedy''. London: J. Harris, 1696. *''The Roman Bride's Revenge: A tragedy''. 1697; *''Phaeton; or, The fatal divorce: A tragedy''. London: Abel Roper, 1698. *''Measure for Measure; or, Beauty the best advocate: A comedy''. London: D. Brown & R. Parker, 1700. *''Love's Victim; or, The Queen of Wales: A tragedy''. London: M. Bennet, for Richard Parker / George Strahan, 1701. *''The Patriot; or, The Italian conspiracy: A tragedy''. London: William Davis / George Strahan, 1703. *''The Plays''. New York: Garland, 1979. Non-fiction *''The History of the Athenian Society''. London: James Dowley, 1691. *''A Comparison between the Two Stages''. London: 1702. *''The Deist's Manual; or, a rational enquiry into the Christian religion''. London: A. Roper / Fran. Coggan / Geo. Strahan, 1705. *''The Complete Art of Poetry; in six parts''. (2 volumes), London: Charles Rivington, 1718. *''The Life and Strange Adventures of Mr. Daniel Defoe. 1719 **also published as ''Robinson Crusoe Examin'd and Criticis'd (edited by Paul Dottin). London & Paris: Dent, 1923. *''All for the Better; or, The world turn'd upside down''. London: John Applebee / W. Boreham / A. Dodd / 1720. Edited *''Miscellany Poems upon Several Occasions: Consisting of original poems by the late Duke of Buckingham, Mr. Cowly, Mr. Milton, Mr. Prior, Mrs. Behn, Mr. Tho. Brown, &c''. London: Peter Buck, 1692. *''The Post-man Robb'd of his Mail; or, The packet broke open: Being a collection of miscellaneous letters''. 1692; London: A. Betteworth & C. Rivington, 1719. *''Chorus Poetarum; or, Poems on several occasions''. London: Benjamin Bragg, 1694. *Charles Blount, The Miscellaneous Works. London: 1695. *''The Poetical Remains of the Duke of Buckingham, Sir George Etheridge, Mr. Milton, Mr. Andrew Marvel, Madam Behn, Lord Rochester, Sir John Denham, Mr. Waller, Mr. Shadwel, Madam Philips''. London: Thomas Minton, 1698. *Gerard Langbaine, The Lives and Characters of the English Dramatick Poets. London: Tho. Leigh / William Turner, 1699. *''A New Miscellany of Original Poems on Several Occasions: Written by the Earl of Dorset, Sir C. Sidley, Sir F. Shepheard, Mr Wolesly, Mr Granvill, Mr Dryden, Mr Stepney, Mr Rowe, and several other eminent Hands''. London: Peter Buck / George Strahan, 1701. *''Examen Miscellaneum: Consisting of verse and prose''. London: B. Lintott, 1702. *''The Golden Spy; or, A political journal of the British nights entertainments of war and peace, and love and politics''. London: J. Woodward / J. Morphew, 1709. *''The Laws of Poetry: As laid down by the Duke of Buckinghamshire in his Essay on poetry, by the Earl of Roscommon in his Essay on translated verse, and by the Lord Lansdowne on Unnatural flights in poetry; explain'd and illustrated''. London: W. Hinchliffe / J. Walthoe, 1721. Except where noted, bibliographical information courtesy WorldCat,Search results = au:Charles Gildon, WorldCat, OCLC Online Computer Library Center Inc. Web, June 26, 2016. See also *List of British poets References * . Wikisource, Web, June 26, 2016. Notes External links ;Poems *"The Vision: A fable" ;About *Charles Gildon (1665-1724) at English Poetry, 1579-1830 * https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Gildon,_Charles_(DNB00) Category:1665 births Category:1724 deaths Category:18th-century poets Category:English-language poets Category:English poets Category:Poets